The effect of the floods caused by “El Niño” on health

Global Health Impacts of Floods: Epidemiologic Evidence

“…Floodwaters can wash away breeding sites and, hence, lower mosquito-borne transmission (41). On the other hand, the collection of stagnant water due to the blocking of drains, especially in urban settings, can also be associated with increases in transmission, and there have been numerous such reports from Africa (20,30,42,43), Asia (44,45), and Latin America (46)(47)(48)(49)(50). The 1982 El Niño event, for example, caused extensive flooding in several countries in Latin America and apparently sharp increases in malaria (46,47).…”

Effects of Global Climate on Infectious Disease: the Cholera Model

“…A retrospective study of drinking-water-related outbreaks of acute gastrointestinal illness in the United States by Rose et al (136) revealed that 20 and 40% of groundwater and surface water outbreaks, respectively, between 1971 and 1994 were statistically associated with extreme precipitation. Other work has also demonstrated an ENSO connection to rates of enteric illness (18,59) in South America, levels of enteric microorganisms in coastal areas of south Florida (United States) (101,103), and cholera in Bangladesh (25,104,124).…”

The Late Life Legacy of Very Early Life

“…malaria and dengue fever were once common in the southern United States. The incidence of waterborne diseases, which account for as much as 80 percent of the annual mortality due to infectious diseases (Clark, 1993), is correlated with warmer temperatures and flooding (Colwell 1996, Gueri, Gonzalea & Morin 1986). Transmission of infections via food through viruses, bacteris or protozoa causes significant illness.…”